Staunton State Park is a Colorado state park in

Park A park is an area of natural, semi-natural or planted space set aside for human enjoyment and recreation or for the protection of wildlife or natural habitats. Urban parks are urban green space, green spaces set aside for recreation inside t ...

and Jefferson counties, located west of

Conifer Conifers () are a group of conifer cone, cone-bearing Spermatophyte, seed plants, a subset of gymnosperms. Scientifically, they make up the phylum, division Pinophyta (), also known as Coniferophyta () or Coniferae. The division contains a sin ...

Colorado Colorado is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States. It is one of the Mountain states, sharing the Four Corners region with Arizona, New Mexico, and Utah. It is also bordered by Wyoming to the north, Nebraska to the northeast, Kansas ...

. The park, which opened on May 18, 2013, includes dramatic rock outcroppings, several streams and a waterfall. On December 4, 2012, the property was also listed on the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the Federal government of the United States, United States federal government's official United States National Register of Historic Places listings, list of sites, buildings, structures, Hist ...

as Staunton Ranch-Rural Historic Landscape. The park was created out of a gift by Frances H. Staunton, who donated the original 1,720 acres to the State of Colorado. Ms. Staunton required the land "be preserved in perpetuity, for public benefit, as a natural wilderness-type park... typifying Colorado's most beautiful mountain forest and meadow region". Since 1986, the State of Colorado acquired additional lands through the Great Outdoors Colorado (GOCO) lottery proceeds. These include the Elk Falls Ranch, portions of the Davis Ranch, and property once owned by playwright Mary Coyle Chase. In 2015 former Colorado Legislator Allen Dines donated his ranch to the park, bringing its total acreage to . The Staunton Ranch was added to the National Register of Historic Places for exemplifying a pattern of homesteading, ranching, and use as a summer resort. It is also considered notable for its

rustic architecture Rustic architecture is a style of architecture in the United States used in rural government and private structures and their landscape interior design. It was influenced by the American Craftsman style. According to the National Park Service, “ ...

and for containing the area's only

sawmill A sawmill (saw mill, saw-mill) or lumber mill is a facility where logging, logs are cut into lumber. Modern sawmills use a motorized saw to cut logs lengthwise to make long pieces, and crosswise to length depending on standard or custom sizes ...

. The park's recreational offerings include rock climbing, multi-use trails for hiking, biking, and horseback riding, stream and pond fishing, and picnicking.

References

External links

Staunton State Park
Colorado Parks & Wildlife
Friends of Staunton State Park
{{authority control 2013 establishments in Colorado National Register of Historic Places in Park County, Colorado Protected areas of Jefferson County, Colorado Protected areas of Park County, Colorado Ranches on the National Register of Historic Places in Colorado State parks of Colorado